War of change
by greeneyeswhitefang
Summary: A string pulled taut will eventually snap if put under enough strain. Naruto's breaking point reaches just after the invasion of Konoha by Pain. Images of his friend's body torn and broken filling his mind, Naruto vows to bring peace to the nations... but doing so might break him completely... Loosely based off War of change by thousand foot krutch.


**Prologue**

* * *

_Wait, it's just about to break,_

_It's more than I can take, _

_Everything's about to change._

* * *

Naruto stood silently, eyes cast downwards as Nagato's words slowly began to sink in. He could feel the two atkatsuki member's eyes boring into him, waiting for his verdict, but he couldn't even bring his eyes up to meet theirs.

Wrapping his arms around himself, he tried to stop the burning sensation that had suddenly appeared in his midsection, but all he could think about was the pain laced throughout the story, feeling it as his own.

"So kid, you going to kill me?" The leader's voice sounded tired, as if the thought of death seemed quite welcome to him, as though he had given up. He felt a spike in the woman's chakra but all Naruto could do was shake his head, whether in answer to the question or to his own emotions running rampant through his body, he didn't know. The urge to vomit was nearly too strong as he fell to his knees, hands splayed out in the dirt to break his fall.

"See what I am trying to achieve now… Naruto" Nagato continued, his voice sounding raspy. The sentence was followed by a bout of spluttering and coughing. Blood sprayed onto the ground and Naruto watched the droplets get absorbed greedily by the dirt.

"We both want the same thing" he continued once the cough had subsided.

_Was that right? _Naruto thought. _Yes… _That much he did know, after everything the two had been through, there was no way they could have an ulterior motive. _But were his methods right… was it really the only way?_

Slowly Naruto began to move, nails digging into the ground as he slid them backwards to haul himself upright. The movement was slow, chakra and mental exhaustion beginning to take toll on his body that was already weary from sage training.

"How?" He asked, his own voice sounding as tired as the Nagato's did as images began to fill his mind.

_Hinata lying face down in the dirt, dark hair splayed over her shoulders and on the ground. Blood slowly trickled down from her forehead and lips to mark the pale dirt. Blank eyes were glazed over forever staring at the spot where he laid. _

_Kakashi lying awkwardly crumpled over a slab of rock, silver hair shot through with red as his one sharingan eye continue to whirl un-naturally. _

_Sakura's lifeless eyes… Iruka's still body… Tsunade's broken spirit. _

Picture after picture flashed through his mind, some true and some only imagined as his despair deepened. All this, this man sitting before him on his throne, had done in the name of peace.

"How?" he asked again, blue eyes shining with frustrated and weary tears rose up in defiance to meet slightly mad purple rimmed ones.

"How can you call this peace!" He screamed as his hands balled into fists and he physically started to shake. "You claim to want peace but how many of these families will want revenge and bring more war to you!"

_I want revenge!_

Nagato remained silent as Naruto tried to rein in his emotions. Kyuubi inside of him was screaming for blood dissatisfied with only the brief stretch of his powers and lack of blood he had gotten that afternoon.

"Then take your revenge… Naruto" Nagato finally said, eyes boring into the blonde's, daring him to make the move. But Naruto stayed rooted to the spot, body still shaking from the repressed emotions but slowly fists began to unfurl and his breathing began to slow into a more natural rhythm.

"No" he said and cast his eyes down towards the floor once more. "I'm not like you"

Slowly he turned on the spot and put one step forward, away from the Atkatsuki pair. "No" he repeated. "There's another way… and I will find it"

Naruto stepped outside of the fake paper tree, eye blinking in the sudden brightness of the setting sun. "I will find it… I promise… Ero-Sensei"

A grinned appeared on his face as he looked at the ball of fire that was slowly sinking towards the horizon. Shadows began to lengthen until they consume the entirety of the teenaged boy's body in blackness. He watched until the sun had completely disappeared before he summoned the last of his chakra, groaning as the sting of fatigue spiked at the action, and bounded into the trees. Away from Konoha.

* * *

Tbc...


End file.
